London, UK, 24 August 2015 – Canon today announces its annual programme of activities for Visa pour l’Image 2015, the international festival of photojournalism held in Perpignan, France. In its 26th year of partnership, Canon will run an inspiring and interactive series of events throughout the seven-day festival that champions the very best in photojournalism and reflects Canon’s passion for powerful images. This year the Canon programme will include:

Canon experience zone
For the very first time the Canon experience zone, located in the Palais des Congrès, will be open to the general public. Visitors will be able to get hands-on with Canon’s latest range of products and solutions; from image capture through to printing. Accredited photographers will be able to book in for a free portfolio review with Getty Images Creative Director, Anthony Holland Parkin, on Thursday 4th and Friday 5th September, and can also visit the CPS desk where they will have the opportunity to get their equipment checked, cleaned and have small repairs carried out, free of charge.

Creative inspiration
A Canon experience bus will be stationed by the Couvent des Minimes, where members of the public will be able to come on board and speak with Canon experts to gain advice on everything from how to take better holiday pictures, to capturing the perfect portrait of your child.

Canon will also be promoting its Rugby World Cup partnership during the festival and inviting visitors to have their photograph taken with rugby players from the local famous team, Union Sportive des Arlequins Perpignanais. A variety of other exciting rugby-themed experiential activities will also be on offer for attendees to get involved with and the best photographs taken will be put into a prize draw where three lucky winners will be given World Cup tickets.

Celebrating the power of images
Canon has sponsored two exhibitions at Visa pour l’image 2015; the first showcasing photographs from the Democratic Republic of Congo by Canon Ambassador Pascal Maître, alongside last year’s Female Photojournalist of the Year Award winner, Viviane Dalles. The second celebrates a body of work from a range of internationally acclaimed photographers to mark the 10th anniversary of Canon’s iconic EOS 5D-series DSLR in collaboration with Getty Images. All of the stunning images have been printed on Canon’s professional large format printer, the imagePROGRAF iPF9100.

Canon Female Photojournalist of the Year Award
For the 15th consecutive year, Canon has sponsored the Female Photojournalist of the Year Award, which will be presented at Visa pour l’Image 2015. Also supported by ELLE magazine for the second year in a row, this year’s award is given to Anastasia Rudenko, for her project on mental illness in Russia. Rudenko will receive a grant at the ceremony on 5th September 2015, to support her portfolio of work. All entrants have been judged on both previous works and plans for future projects. In addition, the 2014 winner, Viviane Dalles, will be exhibiting her work on teenage mothers in the north of France at the festival.

Canon Professional Network
The Canon Professional Network (CPN) will be reporting directly from Visa pour l’Image from 31st August to 5th September 2015. To view stories, interviews and pictures from the show and for more information about the festival, photographers and enthusiasts should please visit: http://cpn.canon-europe.com/.